Although I have had a long career in the Christian ministry, I recently was surprised by an expression of faith. When a person stands for the conviction of his or her faith, things often happen differently, the course of destiny changes wonderfully and powerful forces arise inside and outside the individual.

Faith is truly a human experience, a deep attitude that we hold when reason alone cannot guide us.

My friend, a pastor in the city, has been experiencing for more than two years now his wife's tremendous battle against a devastating disease. I have been by their side during many crises, treatments and hospitalizations, trying to help with a word of comfort, a prayer and sympathy.

I admire his incredible faith, the poise before a daunting disease. It is naturally expected for someone that preaches about faith to show faith through the difficult circumstances of life, but I was not prepared for what happened to them couple of weeks ago.

During a chemotherapy session, my friend's wife suddenly had a bad reaction to the drug, and was admitted to the emergency room. The situation unfolded rapidly and doctors and nurses tried everything in their knowledge to save her. She was placed on a life-support machine because it was the only way she could still stay alive. Finally, the doctors declared to my friend that his wife would probably not recover from the coma and her life was only maintained because of the life support.

Think of despair, hopelessness, fear, and all the soul's enemies coming together and assaulting your being. Man suffers extreme pain and anguish before the possibility of ending. Faced with demise, he might experience a deep feeling of finitude.

Death is a truly a human experience, but nobody is really prepared to experience it. We have to pass thorough the steps of surprise, denial, acceptance and rebuilding the inner self after a loved one passes away in any circumstance. We have to cope with all consequences of death, the last enemy.

I can only imagine what was going on inside my friend's heart. Anyone in this agony would have great trouble to be at peace.

What was his response? He knelt beside the bed and began to pray. Faith made him do this, and faith began to start in his broken heart.

Care staff respected the behavior. Perhaps he would get more consolation by just praying and displaying his faith.

He was left alone with his beloved wife. He stayed there, in the same place, sometimes sitting on the edge of the bed, sometimes bowing again in his pleading prayer to God. He was told that there wasn't any hope and the only thing left was just for the equipment to be turned off, but he was strong in faith.

He remained there, in a vivid test of his endurance. Then, 12 hours after her being in the coma, he observed a little movement of her eyes. He thought it might have been just an illusion, but it warmed his heart.

He told me that a few minutes after, he became totally certain that she would recover. His faith in the possibilities increased inside his soul. Hope began to flood his spirit. This is the experience of faith.

Faith by itself seems to be merely self confidence, but faith must be exercised as a confidence in one greater than oneself. Who else fits the criteria except God?

Back to my friend's ordeal of his wife being in a coma, 21 hours later she awoke for just one minute. He exulted and called the nurse and the nurse called the doctor on call, and everyone came to see what was happening, though only my friend had seen her awake. She turned back to the coma state and, finally, 25 hours after the crisis, turned back from the coma and began to talk and soon got out of the hospital.

Could faith have determined this happy outcome? Was this just a coincidence? You may choose according with your beliefs about what really occurred that day in my friend's life.

A miracle, a supernatural force, is this possible, why not? For me, this is not really important, since any way you conceptualize the matter, you will need some kind of faith to decide between the possible interpretations.

For me, what is indeed meaningful is the absolute awe that I experience whenever I find a unique demonstration of faith.